Onto part 7 of Sweetness' arc on how job hunting has changed in the internet age. Sweetness is available for presentations on the topics of job hunting online and resume submission. Part 1 had the story of FG, one of Sweetness' research subjects. Part 2 dealt with a qualified candidate dealing with a company that had some incredible expectations and part 3 dealt with misleading job postings.
Part 4 began the discussion of job boards and Part 5 broadened the discussion to include filling out online job applications. Part 6 discussed what many job seekers feel is missing in the online process.
Here we learn that some online advice doesn't make sense in the online job hunting world (and note that nowhere am I or Sweetness offering advice or suggestions)...
"The interviewees had followed the advice given by bloggers on how to write a stellar resume and cover letter. They had underlined things that should be underlined, bolded this, moved that, added and deleted things.
"Then they would apply for a job and usually one of two things or sometimes both happened. The job site they applied on only took text formatted documents, or the resume is uploaded as a doc file, then appears as a text file.
"All of the changes suggested by the “experts” are removed, oh well they think the cover letter will save me. But in this instance they have a profile saved on the job board, find the perfect job, hit apply and ….. the screen returns with a “Thank you for applying to…”.
"They gasp in horror. What was sent? I didn’t have an opportunity to write a cover letter and my resume looks like a two year wrote it because it’s uploaded as a text doc. They go away with a sense of gloom hanging over their heads.
"They pick up the pieces and go on to the next application and do the best they can and hope that whoever receives the resume understands the conditions that were placed on the application process and looks at the information submitted and not the format. These job sites say they do, but do they really?
"From what I can perceive at the moment, the challenge is getting in the door. The increased automation of the internet has made that the problem. Once people get in the door things seem to flow much better."
So the internet has made the job of getting resumes easier, but what of screening resumes and actually finding qualified candidates?
More from Sweetness to follow...
Links for this post:
- Sweetness' Research on Job Hunting arc
- Sweetness' Findings: Resumes Going the Way of the Dinosaur arc
- Resumes as Dinosaurs got some notice
- NewsVines discussion on these posts
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